Louisiana's gaming regulator has extended DraftKings' licence on a conditional basis instead of renewing it outright, so investigators can examine allegations about the operator's use of artificial intelligence and its responsible gambling practices. The Louisiana Gaming Control Board voted unanimously. The authorisation runs to February 19, 2027, with the full renewal hearing set for February 18, 2027. The sports betting licence had been due to expire on November 10.
The board heard from Paul Liberman, DraftKings' president of operations and co-founder, and Lori Kalani, its responsible gambling chief. A shareholder who failed a suitability check is a further reason for the delay. 'The additional time is needed to fully investigate these allegations,' said Delancey Houston, an assistant attorney general. Board chairman Chris Hebert noted that conditional extensions have been used before, to give the attorney general's office and state police room to finish their checks. The decision does not amount to an admission of wrongdoing by DraftKings, he added.
Conditions and testimony
Within 30 days the company must file compliance documents, a petition to treat the shareholder as an institutional holder, and a policy for notifying ownership changes. The same window covers written answers on its use of AI, its activity in prediction markets and digital audits of Louisiana residents, plus certification of advertising and promotions under responsible gambling rules. On the 15th of each month it must report new digital products, prediction markets, changes to geolocation, KYC, AML and responsible gambling systems, open compliance matters and litigation. A senior liaison to the board is to be named within seven days.
Liberman argued there is no point using AI to hunt losing players, since most customers on the platform lose anyway. There is no targeting of individual customers or segments, he said. He called DraftKings the first US operator to drop credit card deposits. The record says otherwise: Betr banned such deposits in October 2022, Fanatics did so with its purchase of PointsBet in April 2024, and DraftKings removed the option in August 2025. The MGC fined the company $450,000 over a similar scheme. In West Virginia, Daniel Vest alleges the operator used customer data and automated marketing to press vulnerable bettors, and says he received about 70 promotional messages in roughly a month. The MGC has asked operators to explain whether automated systems decide who gets offers and whether staff control them. The FTC is also examining bookmakers' advertising practices.
Kalani says AI identifies people who need help: a complaint to staff about financial difficulty automatically flags the account for review. Accounts of those who ignore the guidance are closed, 175 of them in Louisiana this year at a pace comparable to 2025. That figure excludes players who stopped on their own or took self-exclusion. Promotions are hidden for two weeks after a cool-off and for 30 days after self-exclusion. For operators, the case is a reason to check how human oversight of offer algorithms is actually built.
